The answer to that was yes, as the clip then segued into an interview with Babbitt's brother, Roger Witthoeft who described how close the siblings had been and how he was dealing with her loss. The Court concludes that Mr. Griffins crossing of barricades to approach the Capitol were overt acts in support of the insurrection, as Griffins presence closer to the Capitol building increased the insurrectionists intimidation by numbers, wrote Mathew, who was appointed to the bench by former Republican Gov. Most of these cases fizzled quickly, and none have succeeded. Griffin said he and fellow commissioners don't see the process as trustworthy. Trump cowboy found not guilty of campaign finance charge His advisory sentencing guideline range for the misdemeanor conviction was zero to six months. Stay up to date with what you want to know. He was arrested on January 17 and charged with knowingly entering or remaining in a restricted building or grounds without lawful authority. Whether this will ultimately stand up if appealed remains a major question and one that could have far-ranging implications. In addition to those legal arguments, the Justice Department asserted that pinpointing Pence's precise location on January 6 would jeopardize the continuing security of future vice presidents, including Vice President Kamala Harris. At a stop in The Woodlands, Texas, on Jan. 1, 2021, the ruling said, Mr. Griffin urged a crowd to view the attempts to overturn the election as a last-ditch fight, comparing it to the famous standoff at the Alamo. US Capitol riot: Army reservist with secret-level security clearance Derrick Evans, was sentenced to three months in jail this summer for committing civil disorder on Jan. 6. Thats hugely significant. Cowboys for Trump founder Couy Griffin sentenced for trespassing Abbott invoked the immigration status of shooting victims, How Trump made it cool for Republicans to hate their own party, JPMorgans acquisition of First Republic revives too-big-to-fail talk, removed Otero County commissioner Couy Griffin, to disqualify Socialist Rep. Victor Berger in 1919, sought to disqualify several members of Congress. If convicted, Griffin faces up to a year in prison on each of the two charges against him: trespassing and disorderly conduct on restricted Capitol grounds. Magliocca said the New Mexico decision could reverberate, not just for people like Mastriano, but if Democrats retain control of Congress and want to challenge the seating of certain Republicans tied to Jan. 6. Contacted Monday, Griffin expressed concern that registering Cowboys for Trump as a political group could lead to reprisals against donors. Griffin never complied with the agreement. The network's correspondent said he learned from pursuing the story that many of those who had stormed the Capitol still believed the line pushed by former President Donald Trump and his allies that the election had been stolen. A CNN reporter was left flabbergasted when a man charged with breaching the U.S. Capitol on January 6 said that he was not convinced about the veracity of two of the insurrection's fatalities. Also worth weighing here, Hemel noted, is whether disqualification is an appropriate remedy. In court papers, federal prosecutors said Griffin bragged about his involvement in the Capitol attack at a county commission meeting. Griffin, an ardent conspiracy theorist who refused to certify the state's primary election results this summer in Otero County, told CNN he has been ordered to clean out his office and attacked. They are as mistaken as you are, McFadden said. 'Cowboys for Trump' Leader Arrested After Pledging to Bring - Insider Since Jan. 6, activists have sought to disqualify several members of Congress who supported questioning or overturning the 2020 election results, including Reps. Madison Cawthorn (R-N.C.), Jim Banks (R-Ind.) After his sentencing, Griffin implored reporters to follow up on discredited conspiracy theories about the Capitol doors mysteriously opening on Jan. 6, an Arizona man falsely accused of being an FBI agitator in the crowd, and the possibility that voting machines in New Mexico might be electronically hacked. He posted a video of himself to the Cowboys for Trump Facebook page on the following day, bragging that he had "climbed up on the top of the Capitol building" and had a "front row seat" to the riot. Their first witness was Matthew Struck, who joined Griffin at the Capitol and served as his videographer. The U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Colombia said that after the incident, he had posted a video to the Cowboys for Trump Facebook page stating that he "climbed up on the top of the Capitol building and . Struck testified that he and Griffin went to the Capitol to find a place to pray. Prosecutors also pointed to more recent social media posts and statements in which Griffin appeared to mock his March guilty verdict and display a lack of contrition for the Capitol attack, underscoring how January 6 defendants have talked themselves into deeper trouble amid their criminal proceedings. On January 6, my actions were taken as the result of my faith and that was why I went down to the Capitol on January 6, to go pray with people., Griffin said there was no signage, there was nothing that indicated I was going into a restricted or unauthorized zone. McFadden responded that was preposterous and you knew you shouldnt be there and you continued to do it., I suspect you were prosecuted because you went to great lengths to publicize your actions. Big Tech news and how to take control of your data and devices, Cowboys for Trump founder Couy Griffin sentenced for trespassing, What the Jan. 6 probe found out about social media, but didnt report, Social Security numbers of Trump officials, allies posted in Jan. 6 files, Jan. 6 report recommends Congress ban Trump from running again, To become an Amazon Clinic patient, first you sign away some privacy, How Mark Zuckerberg broke Metas workforce, Elon Musk describes Starship flight as roughly what I expected, Jan. 6 committee released its final report, analysis about the committees new findings and conclusions, On Jan. 6, 2021, a pro-Trump mob stormed the U.S. Capitol, close to penetrating the inner sanctums of the building. This story has been shared 264,224 times. Griffin said in a text message that he felt blessed to be judged by a jury of peers in his home community and has never felt as vindicated. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. There is an uncomfortable irony when, in the aftermath of that attack, we purport to defend democracy by using the judicial process to deprive voters of their choice of leader. Newsweek has contacted Cuoy Griffin's county commission office for comment. AP. After being convicted at trial, many defendants wait quietly for their sentencing. The judges order grabbed the attention of advocates across the country who have been pushing to use the 14th Amendment to disqualify former President Donald J. Trump and elected officials who worked with him in seeking to overturn the 2020 election from holding office in the future. After attendingthen-President Donald Trumps Stop the Steal rally on Jan. 6,Griffin and Struck walked over barriers and up a staircase to enter a stage that was under construction on the Capitols Lower West Terrace forBidens inauguration, according to prosecutors. WASHINGTON A judge in New Mexico on Tuesday ordered a county commissioner convicted of participating in the Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol removed from office under the 14th Amendment, making him the first public official in more than a century to be barred from serving under a constitutional ban on insurrectionists holding office. Couy Griffin (@CowboyCouy) / Twitter He later said that he had been attempting to lead them in prayer. Advocates for that approach now have a victory under their belts, though. Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. At the same time, Griffins conviction was for misdemeanor trespassing, for which he was sentenced to 14 days and a $3,000 fine. McFadden said the "vast majority" of Capitol rioters who remained outside the building were "not charged at all," and he suggested that Griffin only faced prosecution if he hadn't "gone to such lengths to publicize his actions.". Speaking to another crowd, he called on men from across our nation to come to Washington, D.C., on Jan. 6, because it might be a battle.. New Mexico judge unseats county commissioner over Jan. 6 involvement Prosecutors plan to call a Secret Service inspector and Capitol police inspector later on Monday. Griffin's attorney also accused state campaign finance regulators of bias and singling out Cowboys for Trump for enforcement. After all, if Couy Griffin is disqualified from holding office for his role in Jan. 6, then shouldnt Donald Trump be disqualified for his even greater role in Jan. 6th?. A key question in Griffins case is whether he entered a restricted area while Pence was still present on Capitol grounds, a prerequisite for the U.S. Secret Service to invoke access restrictions. Earlier this month, a jury convicted a Texas man, Guy Wesley Reffitt, of storming the Capitol with a holstered handgun inthe first trial for a Capitol riot defendant. "What I was a part of on Jan. 6 wasn't a violent mob or anything that looked like an insurrection. It is unclear when McFadden will hand down his verdict. But McFadden noted that Griffin had not entered the Capitol building itself but only trespassed on the grounds outside the building, putting him at what the judge called the "minimal end of criminality.". He invoked free speech protections and said Cowboys for Trump used donations to travel and espouse support for conservative ideals, without raising money for a political candidate. As early as November 2020, the ruling said, Mr. Griffin attended Stop the Steal rallies in his home state, some of them with a militia group known as the New Mexico Civil Guard. Griffin elected to have a bench trial, meaning a Trump-appointed judge rather than a jury of 12 will review the evidence and decide his fate. As a strategic matter, Im skeptical that disqualification under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment is the best way or even a productive way to fight back against anti-democratic forces across the country, Hemel said. The report: The Jan. 6 committee released its final report, marking the culmination of an 18-month investigation into the violent insurrection. The sentencing effectively ruled out any further prison time for Griffin barring a violation of his probation in connection with his involvement in the January 6 attack. Reffitts conviction on all charges could give prosecutors more leverage in negotiating plea deals in many other cases or discourage other defendants from going to trial. Matt Dahlseid/Santa Fe New Mexican, via Associated Press. The Justice Department said in charging papers that, following the January 6 insurrection, Griffin recorded a video in which he claimed to have "climbed up on the top of the Capitol building" and stated his intention to return on January 20 the day then-President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration. Smith said prosecutors apparently believe Griffin engaged in disorderly conduct by peacefully leading a prayer on the Capitol steps. People try to storm the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021 in Washington, DC. In 2019, Griffin forged a group of rodeo acquaintances into the promotional group called Cowboys for Trump, which staged horseback parades to spread President Donald Trumps conservative message about gun rights, immigration controls and abortion restrictions. Last year, he became the first elected official to be banished from elected office in connection with the attack on the U.S. Capitol building, which disrupted Congress as it was trying to certify President Joe Bidens 2020 election victory. Griffin's defense lawyers plan to argue that, because Pence was rushed away amid the mayhem of January 6, the Capitol grounds were no longer a restricted, Secret Service-protected area by the time he was there. The dismissed charge against Griffin carried a potential punishment of up to a year in prison and a $1,000 fine. Griffin said in a text message that he felt blessed to be judged by a jury of peers in his home community and has never felt as vindicated.". Unlike that trial, which featured felony charges, Griffin was accused only of misdemeanor offenses. But Griffin has resisted pressure to register the group as a political committee, including filing an unsuccessful petition to the 10th District Court of Appeals. A New Mexico judge on Tuesday removed Otero County commissioner Couy Griffin by invoking the 14th Amendment's prohibition on those who engaged in insurrection from serving in office. He is one of the few riot defendants who isnt accused of entering the Capitol or engaging in any violent or destructive behavior. He also took part in a multicity bus tour arranged by the pro-Trump group Women for America First designed to recruit protesters to go to Washington for Mr. Trumps speech on Jan. 6, in which the president called on his supporters to fight like hell against his election loss and urged them to march to the Capitol while Congress was meeting to confirm it. Last year, he became the first elected official to be banished from elected office in connection with the attack on the U.S. Capitol building that disrupted Congress as it was trying to certify President Joe Bidens 2020 election victory. It looks like theyve been calm and theyre listening to Couy., In a court filing, prosecutors called Griffin an inflammatory provocateur and fabulist who engages in racist invective and propounds baseless conspiracy theories, including that Communist China stole the 2020 Presidential Election.. Pence remained in the loading dock location for four to five hours and never left the security perimeter before the joint session of Congress resumed on the night of Jan. 6, Hawa testified. The actions and statements youve taken since then are in tension with that oath, the judge said. Griffin is charged with two misdemeanors: entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds and disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds. the judge asked. The disqualification of Berger, for instance, was later widely regarded as overreach. The recent bench trial was a disturbing tale of two realities. "I'm . Griffin said in a text message that he felt "blessed to be judged by a jury of peers" in his home community and has "never felt as vindicated." Trump cowboy Couy Griffin found not guilty of. After his arrest, Griffin was initially ordered held without bond, in part because he said on a video he would return to Washington for the inauguration of Joe Biden and theres going to be blood running out of that building. He was released 20 days later, in part because he might be awaiting trial longer than the maximum six-month misdemeanor sentence he faced. Ahead of Friday's hearing, federal prosecutors recommended that he receive 90 days in prison but receive credit for those 20 days already served a period months below the maximum sentence of a year in custody. In a statement, the FBI's Washington Field Office told Insider that Couy Griffin, an elected Republican county commissioner in New Mexico, was detained Sunday afternoon by US Capitol Police,. "There's nothing illegal about that You feel clearheaded now?" Griffin has made a series of controversial statements calling for violence against his political opponents. The final hearing: The House committee investigating the attack on the U.S. Capitol held its final public meeting where members referred four criminal charges against former president Donald Trump and others to the Justice Department. Griffin invoked free speech protections in declining to register and disclose donors to Cowboys for Trump, while expressing concern that financial contributors might be harassed. I wonder who wrote it?. The Associated Press reported the confidential plea agre Cowboys for Trump, which Griffin founded in 2019, is also under fire.

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